


Origin

by engineer10349



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-11
Updated: 2016-05-11
Packaged: 2018-06-07 19:17:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6820765
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/engineer10349/pseuds/engineer10349
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rewrite of Alex's origin story. Lucy/Alex.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Origin

Alex had barely processed that she was in a cell when some woman in an Army uniform showed up. “Hello Alex,” she said. Alex didn’t know who she was, and she had no intention of finding out.

“Go away.” Lucy had kind of expected a warmer welcome from the girl she was basically rescuing but she decided that some random stranger talking to you was a bit weird.

“I’m sorry. Am I bothering you? Were you really busy in this cell?” asked Lucy sarcastically, vaguely annoyed at Alex’s attitude.

“Bite me,” spat Alex.

“I don’t know what your problem is but don’t you want to get out of here?” asked Lucy, more confused than anything else.

“Whatever,” said Alex, who honestly had no idea where she was going from here. There was something vaguely comforting about just sitting here, not having to make any decisions.

“Look, I’ll cut to the chase. The Army has identified that you have real potential. I’m here to get you on the right path. Honestly, I think you could use it.” Lucy had had a whole warm and friendly speech planned but clearly Alex was not going to be receptive to that so she’d changed tactics. It seemed to be the right call, because Alex looked up at her and her facade broke a little.

“Me? The Army?” asked Alex. She had never considered the military in her life. She didn’t particularly think she was cut out for it; then again, what else was she going to do? She just didn’t know anymore.

“Yes. You. The Army. Freedom. What do you say?” asked Lucy, deciding to use as few words as possible since Alex didn’t seem to be open to a real conversation.

“Yeah, fine,” Alex said in a somewhat broken tone. She didn’t know what she was doing with her life anymore. Maybe she did need to just follow someone’s orders. This was a wake up call. Something needed to change. And she didn’t really have any other ideas. 

“Okay, great,” said Lucy, who could see the sadness in Alex’s eyes and began to miss the anger. “Well, I’m just going to sign some papers and then I am going to get you out of here.” Alex nodded although once Lucy left Alex she wondered if she’d ever come back. Maybe it was all just a joke. Some weird game to make people think they were going to be free and then snatch it away at the last second.

Lucy returned ten minutes later with a guard who opened the cell door. She led the way and Alex followed, silently obeying a woman she didn’t even know. Lucy led them to the car park and opened the door to a black SUV which Alex got into. She wondered for a moment if this was some weird kidnapping scheme, but remained in the car anyway because honestly could this day get any worse? Lucy quickly closed the door and almost ran around to the other side to get into the driver’s seat. She didn’t know Alex yet; she wasn’t really ready to trust her alone with her car. Alex however made no move to touch anything, she just sat there staring into space. “Put your seat belt on,” said Lucy with her military voice, the one that conveyed authority and demanded respect, or at least she hoped it did. It seemed to work on Alex; she did as she was told.

It took twenty minutes before Alex said anything. “I think you wanted to take that exit back there,” she said quietly.

“I don’t,” Lucy replied with confidence. Alex just shrugged and went back to silence. “I’m taking you to my place,” Lucy added when Alex didn’t inquire further. Alex looked somewhat confused but still said nothing, and honestly Lucy was starting to feel concerned at how Alex seemed willing to let anybody to anything to her right now. “You’re taking a break. You’re going to crash at my place and I am going to help you get your life back on track. And one day you are going to be one of the finest officers in the Army.” 

Alex smiled at the word ‘break’. She needed a break. She was vaguely concerned about being borderline kidnapped by some woman, but she had kind of decided that now was the time to just go with it. There was something about this woman that put her at ease anyway, like she’d protect her if need be. “Okay,” Alex replied softly. 

They arrived at Lucy’s apartment. It was a small, barely furnished thing with absolutely nothing personal in it. Alex didn’t notice though; she was just tired. Lucy showed her to her room and Alex just took her shoes off and crashed on the bed. Lucy couldn’t help but smile. There was something that she liked about Alex, although right now she just had a fierce need to protect her. She seemed so vulnerable and she needed guidance, which Lucy was more than ready to provide.

Lucy woke Alex up at 6 AM, which Alex did not appreciate whatsoever. She groaned and pulled the blankets up around her, but Lucy just pulled them off. “You have fifteen minutes to shower and get dressed. I will come in there after fifteen minutes; don’t think I won’t.” Alex was still tired and vaguely annoyed, but she was awake enough to register the words and quickly grabbed some clothes from the closet and headed to the bathroom. Alex took 20 minutes but Lucy let it slide. It was only day one. She didn’t want to push Alex too hard.

Alex emerged from the bathroom in a green tee-shirt and black pants. She’d never worn this kind of thing before; she was always into sparkly and low-cut. But she was trying something new, and honestly this was surprisingly comfortable. “Okay you only have to work out for one hour and then you can have breakfast,” began Lucy, who was interrupted by a groan from Alex. ‘Only an hour’ was a real contradiction for Alex; she wasn’t one for exercise. “Yes, I thought that you were probably starting with a low fitness level, so we’ll start slow. You just have to walk,” said Lucy.

“For an hour?” asked Alex, mostly because she was 40% sure she was dreaming. 

“Yes, Alex, for an hour. Now get out of this house and walk. No stopping, no snacks. I will have breakfast waiting when you get back. I’ll know if you cheat,” said Lucy, pushing Alex out the door. Alex resisted a little but Lucy just pushed her harder.

“Wait, wait, can I have some earphones? I have my phone on me but no ...” Alex stopped as Lucy handed her some earphones.

“There you go. I want you to pick songs with a fast beat. No excuses. See you soon,” she said cheerily as Alex walked out the door somewhat reluctantly. Alex realized after about two minutes that she actually had no idea where she was, so her walk was a good way to figure that out. Which of course meant that she pulled up Google Maps and found the closest bars. She just wanted to walk by them. Just so she knew where they were. In case this woman turned out to be a serial killer and she needed to hide in a sea of people. Yeah. That was it.

Alex returned about an hour and a half later. Lucy was impressed; Alex was disappointed at the lack of a real bar in this neighborhood. None of them looked like the kind of places that she was used to. This was definitely a change. She wasn’t really sure she had made the right decision, though, especially given how tired she still was from this ridiculously early morning start. Still, there was something nice about having breakfast cooked for you. Even if it wasn’t the kind of food she was used to. 

They ate in silence. Lucy was a little worried; the Alex that she had woken up had a little more fight in her. She was hoping that it would last, but apparently not. Well, not today, but Lucy was sure that she’d bring it out in her. “Okay, so we’ll do some strength training now ...” started Lucy although she stopped when she saw Alex’s look of horror.

“There’s more? Like now? Like you’re really going to give me a fifteen minute break to eat some damn breakfast and now you want me to do more things?” Alex asked, vaguely horrified. Lucy smiled, she was glad that Alex was talking a little more.

“Are your muscles sore enough that you can’t move?” asked Lucy.

“No,” said Alex, vaguely surprised at the question given that she had never experienced that sensation. Honestly, she didn’t think that that was a real thing.

“Well then yes, you have to do more now,” said Lucy simply as she got up and pulled Alex into the living room. Alex couldn’t do a standard push-up, so Lucy just had her do them against the wall. “I want a hundred in a hundred seconds,” said Lucy cheerily as Alex groaned but complied. Alex was still somewhat confused by this woman’s demeanor. She had imagined more yelling from someone in the Army. She decided that she must be going soft on her, and she wasn’t sure if she found that irritating or if she was grateful. Maybe a bit of both. 

It only took a little over an hour for Alex to truly experience the muscle soreness that Lucy had hinted at. Alex was doing squats; she had four more to go but her legs were so weak that she was shaking so Lucy stopped her. Lucy carried her to the couch with her one arm under her knees and the other under her back and turned the TV on. “Now you get to have a break,” said Lucy, not removing her hands from Alex’s body. Alex didn’t mind, she just leaned into Lucy’s body and felt the relief of not straining her muscles anymore. She liked the feeling of Lucy holding her, partly because she wasn’t even sure that she could stand on her own and it felt good to feel like she had support, but also because she was starting to notice that she was somewhat attracted to the woman holding her close. Lucy was wearing a tank top which showed off her incredibly toned arms, and her incredibly body, and honestly Alex couldn’t believe that she’d been oblivious to the fact that this super hot woman had been in front of her for so long.

Lucy had figured that Alex would be incredibly weak and would need at least a few days to recover, but she admittedly hadn’t really thought through the fact that that meant that she was just hanging out with Alex for a while. She also hadn’t realized that Alex’s legs would give out so much that she actually had to carry her around, and she certainly hadn’t predicted how nice it would feel to have Alex so close to her. She was becoming painfully aware of how single she was with every presumably innocent touch of Alex’s. She didn’t want to make Alex uncomfortable of course, so she tried to repress her attraction as much as possible, and instead focus on what was apparently Alex’s favorite show to watch during the day, Scooby Doo. Lucy didn’t know what she had expected, none of the shows on at this time seemed like Alex’s thing - the news seemed too dull, the kids shows seemed too simple - but Alex apparently greatly enjoyed the ‘guess who did it’ game. Lucy made a few guesses, some of which were right and some not, but Alex was always right. Alex didn’t do the ‘I was right!’ thing though, she just gave Lucy some tips like ‘look when a character shows up without an apparent plot reason, like being a love interest, they did it’. 

Episodes flew by and suddenly it was time for lunch. Alex tried to stand up by herself but her groans of pain prompted Lucy to carry her again. Lucy sat her down so that she could watch her make lunch. In Lucy’s mind, this was a great way for Alex to learn how to make healthy food. In reality, this was a great way for Alex to add comments that greatly concerned Lucy. “Okay but how about 10 times the amount of salt?” “So imagine this: donuts! Do you know what goes with donuts? Everything! Even ... this.” “What is that green thing and why are you putting it in the food?” “Do you know what would go great with ... whatever this is? Pizza! I’ll order it. Please let me order it.” Lucy was having a hard time imagining Alex as a soldier, but she was sure that Alex just needed a little bit of time to get used to it. Alex was really starting to wonder if she was cut out for all of this, but she decided that she should probably wait more than a day before she decided that it was a lost cause, so she forced herself to eat the food in front of her. “I don’t even know your name,”said Alex suddenly.

“It’s Lucy. Lucy Lane.” Lucy deliberately hadn’t mentioned her name in the hopes that at some point Alex would ask. She was trying to get Alex to come out of her shell a bit, although she wasn’t sure if it was really the best way to go. Usually in the Army people needed to tone it down, so she wasn’t really used to this. She kind of liked it though. She kind of liked Alex. She mentally kicked herself and told herself to push those thoughts down.

“Okay, well, hi Lucy. Do you do this often?” asked Alex in the most playful tone that Lucy had heard her use yet. Maybe Lucy’s plan was working. She was glad Alex called her ‘Lucy’ and not ‘Major Lane’. She didn’t want Alex to feel like Lucy was above her. She realized she hadn’t answered Alex’s question and Alex was looking at her expecting an answer. Lucy told herself that she really needed to stop thinking about Alex so much.

“Ah, no. You’re the first. The Army is very interested in you; in case you’re unaware this isn’t exactly standard procedure.” When Lucy had received this mission she had been about 60% convinced that Alex wouldn’t come with her. Not ‘standard procedure’ was a pretty big understatement; who would trust some random who told them to come live with them? Alex, apparently. That was still vaguely concerning to Lucy. 

“Right. Why exactly is the Army so interested?” Alex already knew the answer. It was Kara. It had to be. But she wasn’t sure what Lucy knew. She wasn’t sure how much it bothered her that this was all happening because of Kara. Part of her felt like she had sacrificed a lot for that girl so it was time she got something because of her, but another part of her wished that she got attention for being herself and not for being someone’s sister.

“They didn’t really tell me. I don’t really need to know, I guess.” Lucy was so curious about Alex. This whole thing was weird. But she was a good soldier, she didn’t ask questions. She was secretly hoping that Alex would tell her anyway though. Of course, Alex hadn’t done much talking yet. She didn’t know if that was just because Alex didn’t really know her yet, or because she just didn’t talk much. 

“I guess,” said Alex, wondering if she was really a ‘blindly follow orders’ kind of person like Lucy seemed to be. She was going to give it a shot, she supposed. 

They spend the rest of the day watching TV. Alex offered more commentary as time went on. An action movie came on and Alex commented on the various scientific impossibilities of the stunts - “okay but like you know not to jump out of a car going 100 miles an hour right? Like the force of going 100 miles an hour to like 5 miles an hour in like 1 second will 100% break whatever hits the ground”. Lucy commented on all the tactical errors they made - “the whole point of a gun is to shoot from a distance, not to stand close enough so that the person you want to shoot can just kick it out of your hands”. Neither of them really liked the movie, but both liked hearing the others perspective on it. Lucy had never really paid attention in science class; she’d thought it was all super boring, but hearing Alex explain physics in a more practical way really made it fun. Alex had never thought about fighting anybody before, let alone how to do it well, so she found Lucy’s commentary enlightening. 

Alex tried to get up again, and Lucy was really starting to admire her persistence, but Lucy saw Alex wince and the way she bit her cheek to suppress any sounds of pain and quickly lifted her and took her to bed. She pulled the blanket over her and said, “goodnight Alex” before leaving to go to her own room. It felt strange, after almost constant physical contact, to not have Alex near her. She told herself that she needed to tone it down, that she barely knew this woman, that the sooner she went to sleep the sooner she got to touch Alex again. She’d never admit that last point. 

It was another 6 AM start for Alex and she was still not thrilled with that. Lucy pulled the sheets off Alex as she groaned. “Fine, fine, I’m up, fifteen minutes I know,” grumbleds Alex. She tried to get up but she almost howled in pain and sat back down. “Oh my God I don’t think that’s normal.”

“Oh, it is. It’s always bad when you wake up the next day after something you’re not used to. And since you’re not used to much it’s going to be pretty bad. It’s always hardest at the start. It’ll get easier,” said Lucy, who was starting to wonder how many months it would take before Alex was fit enough for the Army to accept. She wasn’t sure if it would be better to spend more time with Alex or less, because if it was less than it would be easier to not get attached, but if it was more then she got more time with Alex. She knew that the Army wanted her fit fast, but she was only human.

“Okay,” said Alex, very slowly standing up and trying very hard not to show her immense discomfort. Lucy wasn’t entirely sure what the Army saw in Alex, but she could definitely see a certain strength in her that she thought would translate well into military life. Alex very slowly moved towards the closet, her breathing stuttering occasionally when she got frustrated and tried to move faster and felt muscles she’d never noticed before burn. She grabbed the first clothes she could see, it’s not like it mattered anyway since she wasn’t leaving the house, and very slowly made her way to the bathroom. 

It was a few more days of Scooby Doo before Alex’s pain subsided enough to continue. She complained about the food a little less each day, which Lucy called a win. She went for a walk again, which Lucy was actually nervous about because she wasn’t there to catch Alex if something went wrong. Of course she’d never admit her concern to Alex, because they weren’t friends, she was her trainer, and yet that’s not what it felt like. Alex came home in one piece and she was all proud of herself for getting through it, so Lucy decided it was worth the hour of worry. Alex made it through about an hour more of training before her muscles just went ‘nope’ but Lucy was right; it wasn’t quite as bad as last time. Besides, having Lucy hold her was quickly becoming her favorite thing. Not that she’d ever tell Lucy that, because there was no way that Lucy liked her back. Lucy was strong, and confident, and she was literally assigned to spend time with her. She probably didn’t even like her as a friend. She probably thought that Alex was so weak. Alex wondered if she’d like her if she ever got to be as strong as Lucy. 

Time went on. Alex got stronger. She started jogging instead of walking. She cut her hair short because she was sick of it getting in her face all of the time. Lucy had accidentally voiced her approval of the new style and then tried to cover it up with a speech about how it was more practical. Soon enough Alex started running. She could do standard push-ups, then she decided it was more fun to do one arm push-ups. Despite not being standard military practice, Lucy encouraged her because she finally seemed to be excited. Alex had even started to like the food; sometimes she even cooked. Lucy had had to explain to her how to do a few things, but she didn’t mind. It wasn’t in her assignment but she took Alex down to the gun range and started teaching her to shoot. Alex was a natural.

Lucy knew that Alex was about ready for the military. She’d definitely pass all the medical and physical tests. She’d even survive the early mornings, even though she still wasn’t really much of a morning person. But Lucy had gotten used to having Alex around. She had tried not to get attached but that plan had failed miserably. She didn’t get to hold her nearly as much now that she was stronger and she took a lot less time to recover. But Lucy always pushed Alex hard now, because she genuinely wanted to make her stronger, so Alex inevitably ended up spending a few hours on the couch with Lucy even though she always maintained, “I’m fine Luce.”

Alex had surprised herself. She’d gotten stronger than she’d ever thought that she could be. She now wore black tee-shirts almost exclusively because she appreciated that they were very comfortable and it was hard to tell when she spilled things on them. She had given up drinking, at least temporarily, and honestly she didn’t miss it. Lucy felt better than alcohol ever did. Even if she had to sweat for eight hours before she got to be in Lucy’s arms. She knew that she’d probably never see Lucy again after this. She couldn’t tell if her feelings were one-sided or not. Lucy cuddling with her on the couch seemed pretty romantic to her, but maybe that’s just how Lucy was with people? Kara was one of those super affectionate people, so she knew it didn’t necessarily mean anything. Also, her ability to tell if someone was flirting with her was a little off because she wanted Lucy to like her so badly that she thought she might be reading into things too much to see what she wanted to see. But she knew that she had to be almost military ready by now and she wanted to know if Lucy felt the same way. She had to know.

Lucy didn’t wake Alex up anymore, Alex used the alarm on her phone. Lucy did however greet Alex with coffee when she got out of the bathroom in the morning, mostly because it was better for both of them in the morning when Alex was caffeinated as soon as possible. This morning, however, Alex had decided to wear her new workout clothes which Lucy had no idea that she had bought during yesterday’s run. Alex was sure that if Lucy liked her, these clothes had to get her a reaction. If Lucy did nothing, that was that. They were very short shorts and a very short tank top that exposed her midriff. 

Lucy had been waiting outside the door for two minutes with coffee. Alex was usually so punctual these days, she wondered if there was something wrong. Then suddenly the door opened and there was Alex, and there was a whole lot of Alex’s skin, and Lucy’s eyes just went everywhere and her mouth hung open. Alex smiled; this was definitely the reaction that she was going for. “See something you like?” asked Alex playfully. Lucy looked at her with a deer-in-the-headlights expression, worried that she’d made Alex uncomfortable. Before she could start apologizing Alex moved in to kiss her, and Lucy immediately kissed her back. 

After a few seconds Lucy pulled back. Alex opened her eyes and stepped back, only to find Lucy pushing coffee in her face. “I really need you to drink the hot liquid now so we can do that again without me worrying about burning you,” said Lucy. Alex usually drank her coffee fast but she had that cup drained in twenty seconds which was a new record. Alex quickly put the cup in the sink and then walked with purpose back towards Lucy. Lucy couldn’t wait that long though so she met Alex in the middle and kissed her this time. Alex cupped Lucy’s cheek while Lucy let her hands roam on Alex’s body. They stayed like that for a few minutes before Alex started unbuttoning Lucy’s shirt. “Wait,” said Lucy, breaking the kiss and stepping back.

“I’m sorry! I ...” began Alex.

“Oh, don’t be sorry. For that. Ever. That was ... we can’t do this though. We just ... we can’t,” said Lucy reluctantly.

“And why would that be exactly?” asked Alex, confused.

“I’m supposed to be training you. I’m like your immediate superior. It would be inappropriate.” Alex’s head was spinning. Lucy liked her. She actually liked her. After all this time of Alex wondering if it was all in her head, Lucy was telling her that she felt the same. And after a grand total of ten seconds Lucy wanted to put the brakes on. Alex didn’t want that though.

“I’m ready to join the military. I can sign up today. Then you won’t be my superior anymore.” Alex saw Lucy consider it for a few seconds, but then she shook her head.

“But then I won’t see you. And honestly, this is a little new to consider long distance.” Alex didn’t really like the idea of not seeing Lucy. She certainly didn’t know if she’d really do long distance either. And yet this all just felt so unfair.

“So that’s my choice? Have you train me or don’t have you at all?” Alex asked deflated. She had been so happy a minute ago. Hell, the months spent with Lucy when she had hope that maybe they could be something was better than this. Because now there was no hope, and she didn’t realize how nice that hope felt until it was gone.

“I guess so,” sighed Lucy, who really didn’t like it any more than Alex did.

“Then I guess I pick you ... training me, I mean.” Alex was staring at the ground, so she didn’t notice Lucy’s small smile that she quickly hid. Lucy was kind of hoping she’d say that. It wasn’t ideal, but the thought of not seeing Alex again hurt her more than this did.

“Are you going to change?” Lucy asked, mostly because she didn’t get the impression that Alex chose those clothes because she really thought that they looked comfortable to run in. 

“No.” Lucy was a little surprised, and she bit her cheek from smiling. She loved how stubborn Alex could be. Maybe it was because she knew that when Alex got timid it was because she wasn’t having a good time, but she got the feeling that that was just her type based on the other girls she’d dated. 

“Really? You want to go running in the middle of Winter in that?” asked Lucy, unable to hide the amusement in her voice. Alex slowly lifted her head and met her gaze. She held it for a few seconds and smiled.

“I’ll warm up on the run. Or I’ll find someone else to warm me up.” Lucy was pretty sure that Alex was just saying that to make her jealous, but dammit it worked. She couldn’t help but feel incredibly unhappy about anybody else being near Alex. But it’s not like she could actually justify her possessiveness if she wasn’t actually willing to date Alex. And really, what did she expect? That Alex would wait for a girl who wouldn’t even take her?

“I ... I’ll see when you get back then.” Alex just smiled and slowly walked out the door, not breaking eye contact with Lucy until the door shut. Lucy spent the time before Alex returned thinking of all the reasons that this was a bad idea. How would it look? If she wanted a future with Alex then she had to tell people about her. How would that conversation go? What would happen if they broke up? Alex could make a pretty convincing case against her if she wanted to.

All of those reasons just went out the window the moment Alex came home. She was covered in sweat, which was apparently something that Lucy was incredibly attracted to, and Lucy just couldn’t stop staring. She hadn’t really noticed Alex’s muscles before but now it was all that she could look at. God her arms were nice. “Luce? I asked what was for breakfast?” asked Alex for the third time when Lucy finally registered the sentence.

“Yeah,” said Lucy. Immediately after that, she was aware that that was not an adequate response. She wondered when she had turned into some speechless idiot. Alex was just smiling and very slowly walking towards her, only this time Lucy wasn’t backing away.

“Luce? You know if you want something, you can just take it,” said Alex, finally standing just inches away from her. Alex smirked like she already knew that she’d won and Lucy found it incredibly annoying and yet simultaneously sexy so she just pulled Alex into her and kissed her hard. Lucy decided to find out if Alex’s muscles felt as good as they looked, so she let her hands roam over Alex’s body while Alex put her muscles to good use and lifted her to take her to bed.

**********

Alex woke up alone. Well, not entirely alone. There was a note on the pillow that Lucy had fallen asleep on. 

We can’t do this. I called the military and told them you were ready. They’ll call you with the details. I wish things had been different. 

Alex wasn’t sure if she was more mad or upset. Actually, she was sure. She was mad. She was mad that she ever met Lucy, she was mad that Lucy had left her via a note, she was mad that Lucy left her at all, she was mad at at herself for thinking that this could work out. 

Forget Lucy, she decided after ten minutes. She didn’t need her. She was going to be the best soldier the Army had ever seen. She got up for her morning run and went harder then she ever had before. She didn’t need Lucy. In fact, Lucy had been holding her back. All of her softness was just sappy weakness that Alex didn’t want. 

The military did call. She went in for her tests that day and blitzed all of them; they signed her up the next day. She went through basic training like everyone else and never mentioned to anyone that she was specially recruited. She may have lied now and again to help blend in. It worked though; she fit in there and she was even fairly popular. She liked shooting the most. She had discovered a sudden interest in violence. 

She then went through what could only be described as Alien Black Ops training. There were only a few people in their squad and none of them had seemed particularly surprised at the ‘aliens are real and among us and we need to be prepared to defend ourselves’ speech. They learned about different species and where they were vulnerable. They practiced with different weapons designed to kill them. She was the top of her class although that didn’t make her as happy as she thought it would. 

They operated as squads of five. They got sent a folder with information about an alien and their mission was to kill it, burn the body and then get out unseen. Officially, they were soldiers on training exercises. Unofficially, they were a government sanctioned kill squad that targeted aliens.

Alex’s first mission was Target 254. They didn’t use names. They weren’t people, they were targets. Target 254 was a Martian. He could fly, shape shift, read minds and was very strong. They could block out his telepathy with technology, and then they just needed to hit him with a few well placed bullets. That was Alex’s job. She had discovered that she was very good at shooting; so had the Army.

They arrived and began to stake out the target. That was when Alex started to have doubts. This man didn’t seem like a threat. He stood in line to buy ice cream and when the little girl in front of him didn’t have enough money he bought her the ice cream. He reminded her a lot of Kara, and for the first time she wondered if this was really right. What was the difference between this man and Kara? Would she really shoot her own sister because she was born somewhere else? 

She watched the man walk through the park with his ice cream and she noticed that there were no people around. He had gone to a quiet spot; this was her chance. He hadn’t seen her yet, all she had to do was hit him where he was vulnerable. But he seemed like a good person, and she just didn’t have the heart, so she fired some shots near him and watched him turn around to face her. He just looked scared, and she waited. She decided that he was probably trying to read her mind and after a few seconds he realized that he couldn’t. She decided he needed more of a hint so she slowly pointed her gun right at him and then she watched him fly off.

She hadn’t expected a full on interrogation. Her commanding officer said, “if you’re really loyal and you didn’t mean to miss, then you have nothing to worry about.” Nothing about that statement was comforting. Apparently they were bringing in some JAG lawyer to put her through a polygraph. She sat in that room waiting for almost an hour before the door opened. She didn’t know what she was expecting, but she certainly didn’t think that Lucy was going to come through that door. 

“Hi Alex,” said Lucy softly, shutting the door. She started setting up the machine and Alex just sat there, speechless. “I’m going to hook you up to the polygraph machine now,” said Lucy, putting a bunch of sensors on her. The contact was too much and not enough at the same time, and she couldn’t help but think of the last time Lucy had been close to her. She tried to push it down, not to give any of her feelings away, but she was sure Lucy knew anyway. Then suddenly Lucy wasn’t toughing her anymore; she was sitting across from her. “Is your name Alexandra Danvers?” asked Lucy gently, looking at Alex with what looked like an unspoken apology.

“Yes.” She wondered if Lucy had volunteered for this or if she had been randomly given her case. Surely this couldn’t be a coincidence? But why would Lucy do this?

“Are you in the American military?” Lucy had heard her colleague talking about Alex’s case and the second that he let her name slip, Lucy knew that she had to take it. She had to protect her. She didn’t trust anyone else to.

“Yes.” Alex wondered if Lucy was seeing anyone. She knew it was stupid. Lucy had made it clear that they weren’t going to be together. And yet all that Alex could think about was if Lucy still liked her or not.

“Do you wish to cause anyone in the American military harm?” Lucy had listened to the incompetent lawyer who had gotten Alex’s case complain about how long the drive would be to get to this place. So, being the kind person that she was, she had offered to go in his place. In exchange for him finishing her paperwork for the day of course.

“No.” Alex wanted to ask Lucy if she’d meant to cause her harm when she left that night. 

“Have you ever deliberately sabotaged your own mission to let the target escape?” Lucy wondered if Alex knew that she loved her even though she’d never said it. She wondered if Alex even liked her anymore.

“No.” Lucy could tell that she was lying without a polygraph. Alex hadn’t been trained in deception and she certainly wasn’t a natural in it. But she’d betrayed Alex once and she wasn’t going to do it again; she certainly wasn’t going to get Alex arrested for treason.

“Okay, great, you are hereby cleared of all suspicion and free to go,” said Lucy quickly, ripping the sensors off of Alex and packing things up as fast as she could. Alex was stunned for a few seconds, but she wasn’t letting Lucy go this time.

“Luce, wait,” she said, grabbing her arm as she turned to leave. Lucy turned back to Alex and sighed.

“What do you want, Alex?” she asked dejectedly. She didn’t feel like getting yelled at after borderline committing treason. 

“You,” muttered Alex. Alex didn’t think she would’ve heard, but from the loving look in Lucy’s eyes she definitely did. 

“This would be a logistical nightmare Alex. You’re always going to be away on missions.” Lucy had always been practical. She wasn’t a ‘go with your heart’ kind of person. She liked to plan things. She liked to think ahead. And despite how she felt, she couldn’t help but think that every possible scenario for them ended in more heartbreak. 

“Maybe I could do something else? Something more stable?” Alex asked. If she was being honest, Alex only joined so she could be with Lucy. She liked having her around. She liked living with her. She trusted her about a minute after she met her. She didn’t really know why. Alex supposed that she must have liked her pretty early on. So naturally Alex was willing to do any job that meant that they could be together.

“Look, I’ll see what I can do, okay?” Lucy didn’t really know what she was going to do, but she’d missed Alex so much, and Alex was telling her that she missed her too, and honestly this was everything that she’d been dreaming about for months. “Don’t let any more targets go in the meantime,” she muttered under her breath as she finally walked away. Sure, Lucy was practical, but she also couldn’t keep going home to an empty apartment without at least giving this a shot. It felt empty, and Lucy was sick of it. And Alex practically begging her to to be with her and being willing to give up her career made it very hard to say no.

It turned out having a dad as a General came in handy, because he could pull a few strings and have Alex transferred. Alex was essentially security personnel, which felt like somewhat of a demotion, but she didn’t seem to mind it too much. They didn’t tell anyone that they were dating, although almost everybody knew. Nobody minded; it wasn’t a real conflict of interest. JAG and security really had nothing to do with each other, and all the people working under Lucy appreciated the better mood that she was now in. There were a few people who were still clueless of course. They said things like, ‘it’s so nice to see a friendship for a change’ or ‘it’s nice to see women who don’t need a man to be happy’. At this point, Alex and Lucy just thought it was funny. So did the rest of the Army really.


End file.
